New Year’s Resolutions That Franchise Owners Should Be Making This Year

The end of the year is a time for reflection, and you are probably looking at the data to measure your brand’s year-round success. As you analyze the past 12 months, consider making these New Year’s resolutions for the next 12, so your business can have the best year yet. 

Improving Customer Interactions

It’s long been said that keeping customers costs less than investing in new ones. According to the Harvard Business Journal, increasing customer retention rates by just 5% increases profits by 25% to 95%. 

Take a good look at your customer base to make sure you understand who they are and what makes them feel loyal to your brand. You can further improve your customer service by responding to social media comments and questions. Customer feedback will also help to boost your brand loyalty and customer satisfaction. 

Applying Feedback

As a business owner, there may be plenty of people in your ear telling you what you should be doing differently. Some of them are worth listening to. Prioritize feedback from your employees to improve your team’s efforts. 

As Steve Jobs once famously said, “It doesn't make sense to hire smart people and then tell them what to do; we hire smart people so they can tell us what to do.” 

Employees might know the answer to making your business more successful. Additionally, ensuring your employees understand your expectations for positive customer interactions improves the overall brand.

While you do not have to take every suggestion, it is important to let both employees and customers know that their ideas have been heard and considered. 

Making Marketing More Effective 

With technology changing at a rapid pace, so too is marketing. Take some time to review marketing trends in your industry, including social media, and consider how you can increase engagement with your brand’s products and services. Optimize your website so it can more easily be found by new potential customers in their online searches. 

Streamlining Processes 

The end of the year is a great time to reconsider each team member’s job description, responsibilities and contributions. Is each person being utilized to their fullest potential and are you making the most of their strengths? Have responsibilities and needs within the company changed? While technology advances, some tasks which fell to an employee may now well be automated. Make sure you are heading into the new year by delegating tasks in an efficient, streamlined manner and that each team member has clear expectations of what they need to achieve.  

Taking Advantage of Professional Development Opportunities

It is easy to get caught up in day-to-day tasks as a franchise owner, but improving your professional abilities can only help your business grow. Resolve to attend a franchise conference in the new year to increase your network and learn from other business owners. You might encounter consultants, brokers, lenders, vendors, suppliers and other helpful contacts to glean even more wisdom from experts. Also, be sure to check out online courses to brush up on your knowledge of things like the best SEO practices for your brand’s website. 

With these New Year’s goals and achievement milestones in place, you can hit the ground running come January. Which of these professional resolutions will you prioritize first?